you and me we'll start a war
by invisibly inked
Summary: — you should have warned me you were blood red; or the one where Artemis finds out the truth and, inevitably and expectedly, shit hits the fan. "Because we can't have like, ONE normal day in this place." — Isaac Lahey/OC


**notes: _READ THE NOTES AT THE END BECAUSE IT'S PRETTY DANG IMPORTANT. THANK YOU._**

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_**(un)**_

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It starts in detention—like all good stories do (hello, _Breakfast Club_ anyone? exactly)—and it's just the two of them because the teacher totally ditched them for something better to do. Isaac scribbles mini doodles on the wooden desk while Artemis fidgets in her chair. She and Isaac haven't been alone since—well, since the mini history project they had to present together and that was...a really long time ago. Something changed in him after his father died and Artemis doesn't know what because he won't talk to her. It's a little disappointing because she had really hoped that possibly, maybe they could be friends (or something).

Artemis chews her fingernails and glances at Isaac from the corner of her eyes. It feels like he's ignoring her. She _hates_ being ignored. She should probably say something.

Artemis clears her throat loudly. He doesn't even react. Okay, different approach.

"Isaac."

The pen in his hand stops for a split second before it starts moving again and—oh, he is _totally_ ignoring her. Artemis pouts. Jerk. Okay, an even _more_ different approach than the last approach.

Artemis picks up her pen and very casually, just sort of—flicks it. At Isaac's head. He whips around quickly and she sinks in her chair so fast she almost falls. _Suave_.

"What the hell is your _problem_?!"

Artemis shoots out of her seat to glare at him. "_My_ problem?! I know you were just ignoring me and," she points an accusing finger at him, "And you've been avoiding me for like all of the last school year and half of this one and just—what the _hell_?"

"I have not been _avoiding_—"

"I have never seen someone run so fast down a hallway before this morning."

"I was late to class," Isaac defends. Artemis gives him a look.

"You knocked down two freshman."

"I was _really_ late to class."

Artemis sighs and sinks back in her chair. Fine, if he wants to act that way then—_fine_. She doesn't even really care (except holy _fuck_ does she care and it sort of hurts a little that he's gone to such lengths to avoid her). She stares at the desk she's sitting in and tries to ignore the sound of Isaac walking over, bringing a chair with him. She pretends not to see him sit right in front of her and acts like she doesn't notice he's staring at her.

"Artemis."

Someone has doodled Bart Simpson skateboarding over Stewie Griffin in the top right corner. It is actually pretty well drawn. She sort of wants to take a picture of it, maybe put it on her blog—

Her view of the drawing is blocked and replaced with Isaac's face as he folds his arms on the desk and rests his head, looking up at her with his stupid pretty blue eyes.

It's sort of difficult to ignore him at this point. She looks away.

"I'm sorry," he says, sits up, and there's a pause before he continues on, "I've just—so much has happened and changed this past year. It's been crazy. I didn't want to get you involved in the insanity."

She looks back at him but he's not looking at her anymore, instead opting to stare at his hands.

"And after what happened—" his voice breaks in that split second and he clears his throat, "After what happened before with my dad I didn't really know how to talk to you. What to say."

"A simple 'hey girl lemme holla at you for a sec' in the hallway probably would have sufficed," she half-jokes and he stares at her. God, what is even _wrong_ with her. This is not the_ time_ for lame ass jokes.

"I'm sorry that was bad. I'm not good with, um, feelings...or emotional...stuff," she says and really she should just stop talking except she's been cursed with verbal diarrhea and just_ can't_, "I was dropped on the head as a child. By my Aunt Meg."

"Oh my god," Isaac says.

"No, it's okay actually. I've been told it was only a two foot drop and it's good for whenever I want something because all I have to do is guilt trip it up and say 'remember when you dropped me on the head when I was only like nine months' and she is like_ silly putty in my hands_—"

"Artemis please stop talking I am trying to apologize to you," Isaac tells her and she stops talking for a moment, embarrassed.

"Right. Um, I forgive you," she says and he frowns at her.

"That easily?" he asks and he swears that he will probably never understand this girl, "Why?"

She fidgets in her seat and twists the ring on her index finger out of habit. "It's just that," she starts, "I don't think I was ever really mad at you in the first place. I was just kind of hurt, you know? We were kind of like friends and then all of a sudden you just stopped talking to me and wanting to be around me—"

"No, I didn't—" he tries to correct her but she continues on.

"And that kind of hurt because mostly I just wanted to know that you were okay. But every time I wanted to ask you'd run away. Literally. And I still don't know if you are. So," she stops moving, stops twisting the ring on her finger and looks him very carefully in the eyes, "Are you okay Isaac?"

There's a pause and a grin and "I'm great."

Artemis grins back and feels infinitely better already. "Good."

(except there's something else, something he still isn't telling her and she can sense it, whatever it is.

she won't push it though, because finally they're good again and so she won't push it).

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**endnotes: so here's the thing about this story. it isn't finished. that's why it took me so long to put up because i wanted to start putting chapters up when i had more than two written down. HOWEVER, a lot of you have been patiently been waiting for me to put up the sort-of-not-really-a sequel to "mister cellophane" and i felt kind of bad. but i haven't really had a chance to write and even now updates for this will be pretty slow because of senior year which is THE busiest year in your high school life.**

**so yeah.**


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